proverb · Words worth keeping
If you fail to practice your art, it will soon disappear.
If you fail to practice your art, it will soon disappear.
Historical period not yet established
Understand the thought
Meaning in plain English
The saying warns that an unpractised art may disappear. It emphasises continued engagement with a learned skill.
What the words are saying
Disappear and soon make the warning absolute and urgent. A qualified interpretation values practice without asserting a fixed timetable for skill loss or promising that practice alone preserves every ability. The supplied secondary-level gloss does not clarify this practice-and-continuity image and is not substituted for it.
Everyday example
An artist considers how to remain engaged with their craft through a manageable routine when circumstances permit.
When to use it
Use it to discuss continued practice with personal circumstances and limits recognised.
What it does not mean
No inevitable disappearance, exact timetable or guaranteed preservation of ability is established.
Agent-assisted editorial interpretation. This explains the words; it does not by itself verify their author or earliest origin.
Attribution & collection notes
- Author or tradition
- Traditional
Attribution: traditional - Country attributed
- Not established
A country attribution does not establish the earliest origin. - Historical period
- Historical period not yet established
No sufficiently supported historical placement has been established. Import and download dates are not treated as composition dates. - Recorded source
- Contributor-provided proverb reference
Supplied reference A; unit 793; PDF page 113
A collection's publication date can be later than the words it records.